Ref: The Hearthstone Town and Country Pennsburg, Montgomery County, PA Thursday - November 13, 2003 Surnames: Aguialdo, Dewey, Hunsberger, MacArthur, Wheaton LOCAL LIVES - THREE FACES OF WAR Part II - A Voice From a Forgotten War By Larry Roeder America's war with Spain ended in 1898 soon after some 35,000 Spanish soldiers surrendered to United States forces at Manila in the Philippine Islands. Admiral George DEWEY's famous decimation of the Spanish fleet in Manila Harbor, and Colonel Arthur MacARTHUR's capture of the city helped to lead the way to the Paris treaty. Philippine rebels, under the leadership of Emilio AGUIALDO, had been fighting the Spaniards for independence since 1896. Now they found themselves in a seemingly advantageous position as allies of the United States. In December of 1898, the United States paid Spain $20 million to annex the entire Philippine archipelago. This didn't please some of the Filipinos, who had no intentions of becoming a colony of another imperialist power. A few months later, in February 1899, the Philippine-American war erupted when a minor skirmish ignited a full-scale military conflict. It is by no means a war that should be forgotten. The United States committed more than 70,000 troops to the conflict and suffered 4,234 dead and 2,818 wounded. The Philippine's fared much worse with 20,000 military and 200,000 civilian deaths. All over America young men felt the lure of adventure and the call to arms in far-away lands. Wallace K. HUNSBERGER (pictures) was one of them. He was born near Hillegass (Red Hill) on March 5th, 1856. When his school days were over he took up the trade of a tailor and worked at his father's shop in Pennsburg. When the Spanish-American war broke out in early 1898, a call for volunteers went with it. And the 32-year-old tailor jumped at the chance to serve his country. He signed up for a one-year enlistment in the Army in August of 1898. He was assigned to the 13th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers, and stationed at Fort Meade near Harrisburg and later at Chicamaugua Virginia. That was all the farther his regiment got before the war ended. When HUNSBERGER's tour of duty was over, he decided to re-enlist for a two-year stint. Shortly after signing on again, HUNSBERGER was promoted to the rank of Corporal. Of his promotion Hunsberger wrote, "Your old friend ... received a corporal's pay. I tell you, I must confess I feel just a little proud of Uncle Sam's stripes." It was mid-1899, and things were starting to heat up in the Philippines. This time he was assigned to the 29th Regiment of United States Volunteers. After more training at Fort Meade HUNSBERGER and the rest of the 29th set out for the Philippine Islands. They arrived in Manila Bay on November 22, 1899. In his letters home, HUNSBERGER related his experiences in the trenches around Manila and in the jungles of Luzon. His awe, as well as many of the troops there, of Admiral DEWEY was apparent. On one occasion he wrote "You boys should be here then you could see what Admiral DEWEY did to this Spanish fleet. Where I am now stationed, I can see the wrecks of three of the Spanish battleships that were put out of business by America's present greatest admiral." Not all of the Filipinos were unhappy to see the Americans. The natives weren't treated well by the Spaniards, and many were indeed happy that the U.S. released them from Spanish rule. HUNSBERGER penned letters of the local lifestyles and people that he met. He wrote, "The main commodity of food used is rice. Oranges and bananas are plentiful." Of the island's women he said "the female sex on the island are small, interesting, and in many cases quite pretty." But HUNSBERGER's stay in the city of Manila was short. A couple of months after he arrived there, he was reassigned to the 28th Infantry Scouts under the command of General Lloyd WHEATON. The unit embarked on an expedition into southern Luzon to drive out rebel forces. They gained control of the Pasig River and the bridge over it, cutting the enemy's communication line between northern and southern Luzon. While on that expedition, his company captured 10 officers of AGUINALDO's army. When HUNSBERGER came home, he relayed some of his experiences in a newspaper interview. His regiment was made up of mostly raw recruits. Of his pride in his outfit's action at Imus he said "It gives me great pleasure to say, although we were raw, not one flinched from the discharge of his duty. Notwithstanding the fact that we held this position for four weeks." By the time he returned to civilian life he was 35 years old. He resumed his love of the outdoors that included fishing and hunting. He was a charter member and volunteer with the local fire department, where he served as a training officer. He was still full of life and loved to share his experiences with those who would listen. He weathered the tropic diseases of the South Sea Islands and the perils of the journey there and back. He survived the vicious rebel assaults on Manila, and the searches for the insurgents in the jungles of Luzon. What finally defeated the vibrant HUNSBERGER was an appendicitis attack that took his life four months after he returned home.